"Just after 8 a.m., a set of brown curtains opened and the leader emerged, a gaunt 69-year-old with clunky glasses and a long white beard, with a black turban on his head and a black clerical gown draped around him. The journalists, mostly Iranians, gasped and then chanted a religious blessing."

One radical Islamist stooge of the Guardian Council goes out; another goes in.

Iran does not have free elections, because the regime decides who is allowed to run. The regime uses these elections to distract people from the fact that they don't really have a choice when it comes to the most important issues.

Boy, it seems a lot of people on this forum have a stake in Iran not becoming a more moderate political society!

Mousavi has been running on a much more moderate vision for Iran. To me that makes a difference. If he won the election then it says that most Iranians want a more moderate Iran. I would ask those who seem to be threatened by this "that is a bad thing because?"

L E Lee...The moderate Iranian people are in a Police State with an evil tyrant making all the decisions. But you are correct that it is encouraging that the people want moderation from the evil tyrant over their police state. It's sort of a warm fuzzy feeling that gives Hope to all the people of the world who are soon to be vaporized by Iran's Obama approved Atomic weapons.

You must wonder if the Iranian election was run by the St. Louis, MO election commission.

But, can anybody explain why we should give a shit? We've been told it's quite evil to impose our value (I bet Nelson Mandela is happy we didn't believe that back during apartheid) and if Iran wants to keep Pres. Bob in charge, fine.